AS SEEN THROUGH WOMAN’S EYES.

New Zealand Graphic, Volume XXIV, Issue XV, 14 April 1900, Page 713

AS SEEN THROUGH WOMAN’S EYES.

HOW TO KEEP A PRETTY NECK. A. WARNING HINT THAT SHOULD NOT BE NEGLECTED. A perfect neck is rarely found. Nature has been sparing of this choice attribute of beauty—as sparing as the weather is of sunshine days in an English winter. The slender neck usually needs a tuck or two taken in its length, while the chubby one looks as if it might be benefited if an inch or two were let out. Aet Father Time apparently thinks a woman values h*r neck more than her face, for the mischievous old thing usually plants his finger on the throat before ever he attempts to score the signs of age upon the countenance. Happily, however, the throat yields very quickly to beautifying treatment, that is to say, to massage and exercise. You can almost see it throw off its imperfections. Now there is one adjunct of the smart woman's toilette that does her throat a world of harm. Minor mistakes are responsible for much. The indiscriminate application of face cosmetics is one. They bleach the skin to the collar edge, and there leave a strange mark that is anything but charming. But above tthis error is the one of wearing high stiff collars that attenuate and wrinkle the throat most frightfully. The woman who likes low-cut gowns always has a whiter, prettier neck than the little business girl who never gets out of high neckbands and collars. If you are wise you will have your house dresses cut rather low, so that the neck and face will assume a uniform whiteness, and your high collars (if you must wear them) will be unstiffened and unlined, and, as well, they will not be tight unless the mischief past collars have worked is not to be mended, and you wish to hide your neck for evermore from critical eyes. Do remember, though, that the muscles of the neck quickly respond to exercise, and that flabby and stringy throats may be beautified by it. Perhaps you have seen those little monkeys and mandarins that wag their heads until one does not know whether one is going crazy or merely is the victim of a nightmare? It is just such exercise as that that builds up and strengthens the muscles of the neck and tones the tissues.

Drop the chin low over the chest, then raise the head slowly and tilt it back as far as you possibly can. Do this for twenty or thirty times every morning-, reserving a soft collarless dressing-gown for your exercising costume, and don’t be afraid of fresh air. even if it be a trifle chilled by Mr Jack Frost. Exercise of every description is of little value unless one is breathing good, pure, fresh air into the lungs. It is like eating a salad without dressing. Another excellent means of remedying flabbiness of the throat—and the fiddle-string condition is the same thing—is achieved by relaxing the muscles and letting the head fall limply on one side and then on the other. What does it matter if you feel like an idiotic automaton while going through these performances? The fun of it should stir your spirits and make you begin the day happy of heart, which is everything if one wants to be pretty and attractive. Besides, the exercises are excellent, and productive of really rapid results. After finishing the donkey nodding movement and the other exercise, apply melted cocoa butter. Rub it into the skin well, placing the finger tips together and stroking the skin back firmly towards the ears. If you can arrange it, have somebody to do this stroking for you. as it is rather awkward io manage oneself. ® ® ® WHY SHE WAS CHARMING. “The sight of that little lady always, does me good, for she’s as neat as a new pin and as bright as a button,” said a. fastidious old gentleman to ma of a mutual acquaintance. It was quite true. The girl, with her pleasant smile and her trim little figure was certainly a sight to delight in. But what was her particular charm? I know dozens of girls who are far better featured and quite as intelligent, and who spend more on their clothes, but somehow they lack

something that she has. What is it? Aftei- a little time 1 came to the conclusion that it was her utter neatness and freshness. That is a beauty that everyone may acquire, so let me give you a few hints. Remember that "a stitch in time saves nine.” and that it is that stitch which keeps a gown looking at its best. Then be careful that everything which you wear is immaculately clean. If you ever find yourself wondering if a collar or a piece of frilling will do “just one more day” be quite sure that it is not fit to wear. Never put on a dress, coat, or hat without seeing that it is perfectly free of dust, and, if possible, always brush all these articles on taking them off and before putting them away for the day. Let your cleanliness extend even to your jewellery, and, with the exception of your pearls, keep it bright by plunging it frequently into pure alcohol, brushing- it with a soft brush and then polishing- it with a. soft chamois leather. It is best to use a. paint brush, such as is used for water-colour drawing. for stiff bristles might easily loosen stones from their settings if used often. ® ® ® IS IT “FOLLY TO BE WISE . A brave little woman who is .am ing her living as “something in ti.a eiiy” wants to know whether 1 liii.iK it is true that business knocks the bloom off a girl, lessens her refinement and unfits her for domestic happiness should marriage be offered her.

Poor little business woman! Hou hard to plod on at your daily work, fearing as you do so that its performance may spoil your chances of captivating- the Prince Charming whose coming you long for, chiefly because you desire to reign over the home in which he would place you. But do not give way to fears. Business! will not render any good, womanly girt unwomanly, and if Prince Charming comes he will be as pleased to take you from the counting house as he would from the boudoir.

Knowledge of ihe world and its evils, which inevitably comes to the woman who lives in tne busy haunts of men, will wear off the freshness of ignorance which once distinguished her, but she will not lose inward purity and refinement, and will gain something which is far more worth having than the bloom ox the bread-and-but-ter miss. Knowing rhe existence ot evil she will learn to jus.ly apprecia,. goodness, ami having experienced th.narduessi of business lire, she will know how to value a good home. Accordingly, when she has a husband and a home —ir her husband bu a good man and true —she will prize both far more than if she had lived the sheltered life of her wealthier sister, and prizing- them she will do her atmast to cherish and to keep them. If, on the other hand, her husband disappoint her, and she discover faults and failings which she never suspected in him before marriage, then her knowledge of the world and its temptations will lead her to judge more kindly of him than she would do otherwise, ami instead of alienating him from her by the self-righteousness of ignorance slie will be able to pity and forgive, and by her love to raise him to better things. So, according to my way of thinking, it is no “folly to be wise,” and instead of the knowledge of the world of a business girl lessening her value as a wife 1 am very much of the opinion that it will increase it. It will certainly add to her sympathy in het husband’s work as the family breadwinner. and he will be the gainer in having a wife able to take an intelligent interest in his affairs, and to give him tin- help of her counsel in those matters in which a woman’s wit and tact are specially valuable.

t a, ukESdDicfiinaime d jo yywfh ® ® ® IN PRAISE OF SCREENS. The comfort of tin- persons iq a house would be increased if screens were regarded as necessities rather than as ornaments or luxuries. The cost of them may be little or much, as one pleases, but there should bo a screen in every sleeping room and in the living room. The tall screen inny be put before the open door and

give one air without allowing - every passer in the hall to see the interior of the room. There is nothing - better than a screen to shut off draughts. A sewing-room screen is useful and pretty. A good pine frame is covered with denim. The inside *s a series of pockets for holding all the essentials of sewing, and one large pocket at the bottom holds articles to be mended. 'l'he useful screen should have its cover extend to the floor, but this is not necessary for one which is ornamental first and useful after. 'l'he frame may be made of pine, and any one who is at all clever with tools can make it. For a child's room a pleasing screen was made by having a cover of cambric and on one s’de of this were pasted pictures from Mother (loose and other childish

(•hissies, while the other side had pictures if famous men and copies of great paintings. These may be found easily now. This screen was an unfailing delight to the ch’ldren and a source of knowledge as well, for they sought to learn about the persons and paintings represented. Art burlap makes a good material for cover, and so does art denim. Many persons use silkolene fulled on. but Ibis does not serve as well for protection and gather dust. 'l'he plainly laid cover kept in place by brass headed na’ls is better liked. Sometimes the nails are set on io give the impression of keeping hinges in place, and follow a scroll design. 'l'he effect fes rather good, provided hinges might be there. One in dark green burlap thus decorated

is effective. and might lie made at home.

® ® ® FASHIONS IN JEWELS.

'These days, you see, there are fashions in everything. Now let me tell you the fashions in jewels. In the old days people never considered fashions in jewels. They wore whatever they had, and that was all the thought they gave to it. Nowadays there are jewels appropriate to time and place, and the fashions in gems change almost as frequently as do the fashions in clothes. It is just now the fad to wear will street and severe day attire jewellery made of what are called semi-precious stones. That is. coral. amethyst, onyx, lapis lazuli, topaz, jacinth, turquoise and jade. 'These stones are set in gold. silver, gun metal and steel. They form brooches, stick pins, buckles. chains, studs, cuff links. pins for the. back hair, etc. They are smart in the extreme and yet in perfect taste, for with a cloth-ta'lor gown diamonds, cnneralds, anil rubies look entirely out of place, as if one were to wear a decollete gown with a travelling hat. Cameos are also in vogue for day and street dress, and some rare old examples are displayed. If one is so fortunate as to possess two of the old-fashioned cameo bracelets that our grandmothers used to wear, made all of small cameos, she may have the most exquisite dog collar to wear outside her silken stock for they are the latest wrinkle, and wonderfully pretty and decorative. The big cameos an* used for belt buckles, and the small ones are made into sleeve links.

Everybody wears a chain. If it is not intended for one service it is for another. Women have a chain for their lorgnettes, their watches, purses, keys, muffs, monocles, and anything- else they can think of.

These chains are of every sort imaginable, coral. turquoise, jade, gold, silver, gun metal, and, for dressy occasions, pearls, diamonds, and any other costly gems. Hut a chain is indispensable, of one sort or another, and the

SOME RECIPES FOR COOKING APPLES.

It is a singular thing, the lack of imagination most cooks appear to suffer from when they are confronted with a plentiful supply of apples. 'They can manage apple tart and slewed apples, and then they have no irther alternative but apple charlotte. but even this is apt to pall on any but the most youthful palate. I would advise those in such a dilemma to try the following recipes: Mix well together four apples (these must, of course, first be peeled, cored, and finely chopped), (ioz of chopped suet, B tablespoonfuls of castor sugar, a small quantity of finely shredded lemon peel, Boz of breadcrumbs, Boz of flour, two tablespoonsful of apricot jam, and, if liked, a few preserved cherries cut into quarters. Having mixed till together, bind the mixture with three eggs, and steam in a buttered mould for an hour and a half. As the apples are chopped up this is a good recipe for tipples that have been bruised in the ease, making allowance, id' course, in the quantity for what you have to throw away. Apple fritters, too, are an excellent way of cooking this fruit. The apples should be peeled, cored, and ent into slices about a quarter of an inch thick, and then soaked in brandy for a couple of hours. 'To do this lay the slices in a soup plate, dust over with sugar, and sprinkle with brandy; after an hour turn the slices and repeat on the oilier side. The slices must be wiped quite dry before putting in the batter. Any of the brandy left in the plate can be added to the batter. Dip the slices in batter and fry them in fat, which must be quite boiling. You will, of course, remember that the batter for frying must be made with lukewarm water not milk. Be careful to drain the fritters well, and sprinkle them with sugar at the moment of serving.

Another more elaborate sweet Is caramelled apples; these are very good indeed. A syrup should lie made of sugar and -water, to which, when boiling, add the juice of half a lemon. Then put in quarters of peeled apples, letting them lie side by side and putting none on top. Stand the pan at the side of the stove, shaking it now and then and seeing that the fruit is well covered by the syrup, which will gradually boil away. In almut an hour’s time look at the under sides of the pieces of apple, and, if they are a rich golden brown, turn them very carefully and let them cook for another quarter of an hour. Then place them on a dish to get cold.

Fried Apples.—Take out the core and slice the apples in thin round pieces. Do not peel. Drop in a pan of hot butter or lard and let them fry a I'ght brown. Take out with a strainer, sprinkle them with sugar, and serve hot. Small apples are best for frying. Apple Tapioca.—Arrange in a buttered dish six apples that have been pared and cored. Soak a cupful of tapioca in hot water for an hour or more; sweeten and flavour it to taste, and pour it over the apples. Bake in a moderate over for an hour.

Apple Cream.—Select apples of equal size, waslh and pol'sh them, remove cores, place in a baking' tin and put a. little water in the bottom of the pan. Bake in a moderate oven about thirty minutes; baste frequently, so they will not burn or blacken. Fill the centres with whippeed cream or else serve them with sugar and cream. Apple Dumplings.—Make a short pie crust, roll it thin and cut into squares large enough to cover an apple. Pare the apples, remove cores, and fill the space with sugar, butter, a little ground cinnamon and nutmeg. Place an apple in the centre of each Square of pie crust, moisten the edges with white of egg- and fold together. Bake in a moderate oven about forty minutes. If preferred the crust may be folded under the apple, leaving- it round. Brush the top with egg, and ten minutes before removing from the oven dust with

a little sugar. Apple Sauce. — Peel twenty apples, quarter them and take out the cores. Slice them as thin as wafers; put them on the fire with three ounces of fresh butter, one quarter of a pound of sugar, a piece of whole cinnamon, the thin peel of a lemon, and a tumbler of water. Cover and stir thoroughly until soft and thick. Afterward st':r them until smooth, and take out the cinnamon and lemon peel before serving-.

WHAT WOULD YOU DO FOR A LIVING?

“What would you do for a living if your wealth were swept away?” was the pertinent question the Bishop of London recently put to a gathering of wealthy young ladies. The replies are interesting. "Here and there a lady of wealth, education, and position, after mustering her possibilities in review, was bound to confess (says the “World”) that she would have to become a general servant, adding with candour, and probably with truth, that she would make an uncommonly bad one. Others replied that they would ’bedom|e> singiers, belonging presun-j--ably to the small minority of ladies who can sing. One here and there evinced a preference for hospital nursing. 'There is a certain romance about the hospital nurse when viewed from a distance, and the dress is most becoming. But the majority of the young ladies to whom Dr. Creighton propounded his startling problem announced frankly and unhesitatingly that they would “go on the stage.” The reason is that most women, and a good many men, cherish an ideal self. Ireautiful, brave, noble, which they long to play; and the stage, with its grease-paint, scenery, and limelight, gives them a chance of playing it. But, setting aside the cases in which vanity is the predominant motive, there are numerous instances in which a young- woman of jxisition finds it desirable to replace or supplement a diminished parental income by her own exertions. She will naturally take the line of least resistance, the line that entails the least exertion. Evenapart from the advantages of possible notoriety, the stage offers the only ocupation in which thorough incompetence is well paid.”

FAULT-FINDING IN MARRIED LIFE.

If a man fiuds that he has a wife ill-adapted to wifely duties, does it follow that the best thing he can do is to blurt out, without form tfr ceremony, all the criticisms and corrections whieh may occur to him in the many details of household life? He would not dare to speak with as little preface, apology, or circumlocution to his business manager, to his butcher, or his baker. The laws of society require that a man should qualify, soften, and wisely time his admonitions to those he meets in the pilfer world, or they will “turn again

and rend him,” But to his own wife, in his own house and home, he can find fault without ceremony or softening. So he can; and he can awake in the course of a year or two to find his wife a changed woman and his home unendurable. He may find, too, mat unceremonious fault-finding is a game that two can play at, and that a woman can shoot her arrows with iar more precision and skill than a man. But the fault lies not always on the side of the husband. Quite as often is a devoted, patient, good-tempered man harassed and hunted, and baited by the inconsistent fault-finding of a wife whose principal talent seems to be in the ability at first glance to dis-

cover and make manifest the weak point in anything. We have seen the most generous, toe most warm-heart ed and obliging of mortals under this sort of training, make the most morose and disobliging of husbands. Sure to be found fault with whatever they do, they have at last ceased doing. The disappointment of not pleasing they have abated by not trying to please. ® © © KEEPING A HUSBAND’S DOVE.

The fact that your husband is your husband does not mean that his love will be always yours. You did your best to please and fascinate him before you were married ? You need to be even more fascinating and pleasing now. And w-hy? You did not belong to him before; now you do. It is man’s nature to be always in pursuit of something; therefore, if you wish to keep his love, you must keep up his interest in the chase. Never let him feel that he has actually captured you. Flirt with him, tease him (when he is in the proper mood for it). Keep up the romance as long as possible, and don’t get commonplace. Flatter him, trust him, and be careful not to make him jealous. Jealousy, though an excellent thing for a. lover, is a very bad thing for a husband. One thing you must understand—it is a very occasional man who cares to be bothered with his wife’s troubles. He may expect you to hear and share all his, but he looks for nothing but brightness and joy from you. It rests with yourself whether you think it worth while to humour him or not. Only, if you do not give him the consolation he wants he will go elsewhere for it. Once lose him in this way and you may consider him lost for ever. No man likes to see his wife looking untidy, or cross, or miserable; there may have been many things to make you so, but. all too trivial to explain to him. The wife who wants to keep up her husband’s love must make up her mind to work for it.

HOW TO DRESS WELL.

The well-dressed woman is not necessarily expensively dressed, and it is quite possible that clothes may be both costly and well-made, and yet the general appearance of the wearer anything but desirable. The reason then will probably be that her clothes are not suitable for the work or the pleasure that she has in hand, or that their colours are not well chosen, or that they are not neatly and trimly put on. There is an immense deal in the way people put on their clothes; some people are always neat and dainty in every tiny detail, and others say that “as long as the general effect is good, little things don’t matter,” for it never occurs to them that, it is just the attention to “little things” which makes a good general effect possible. The woman of real refinement is never loudly dressed, but she is always absolutely dainty. She may be poor and have to earn her living in an office, but still there will be no mistaking her. She will perhaps wear a somewhat shabby serge or tweed costume, but it will be well brushed, and instead of decking herself out with fluffy lace and ribbon neck arrangements, which soon crush and soil, you will notice that she favours linen collars and cuffs, and a neat tie. She is never guilty of overdressing (a fault more common with the average than the wealthy woman) for though “the sweetest blouse in the world—all tucked silk and lace,” and “a ducky little rose toque” are to be had at Madame Louise’s in sale time for about the same sum as she would have to give for a well-made cotton shirt and a simply trimmed straw hat, she knows that the former would be out of keeping with the rest of her clothes and her surrounding generally, and that, being unsuitable, they would look vulgar, however pretty they might be in themselves.

MOLES ARE LUCKY

Some people never know when they are in luck, it seems, for those people who have moles nearly always want to get rid of them, while those who are not so blessed—or shall 1 say afflicted? are quite envious of the owner of a nice little mole, which, like a patch of corn-plaster, has a way of marvellously setting off a pretty complexion. Of moles, according to some people, one can hardly have too many, for the person who has as many moles as letters in his (or her) name, is bound to be lucky. In spite of all the good points about moles, it is very seldom that the owners of them can be persuaded or their beauty, and, accordingly, they are always tinkering away at their faces to try to get rid of them.

Personally. 1 think they are better left alone; but [terhaps these people who don’t agree with me may be glad of a hint given by a medical paper, which says that moles may be safely removed by shaving a match to a fine point, dipping it into carbolic acid, and then lightly touching- the mole, taking care that the acid does not touch any other portion of the skin. Apply this every three or four days.

N.B.—The utmost eare is needed in using carbolic aeid. for it is a strong

corrosive poison